Bethpage-Tribune_1986-09-18

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VOL. 21 NO. 23 Week of September 18 - September 24,1986 20 cents per copy
Grumman Dedication
To Clinton Towl
Grumman Corporation has dedicated its recently com­pleted
headquarters building on Stewart Avenue, Bethpage,
to E. Clinton Towl, a founder of the company in 1929 and a
former long-time resident of Split Rock Road, Syosset.
Towl, known as Clint throughout Grumman, began his
career with the company as one of six founders. At that time,
Towl and tow contractors went to Baldwin, Long Island, to
ready Grumman's first planf-- a former garage that was in
shambles. Two weeks later, he was joined there by Roy
Grumman and the other founders.
Once Grumman's initial business ventures got under way
— building floats for U.S. Navy aircraft and repairing
amphibian airplanes — Towl assisted the treasurer, the late
Edmund Poor, on financial matters. He was also Grum­man's
first paymaster.
Towl eve'ntually became the company's chief business­man,
overseeing all areas except engineering and manufac­turing.
He was elected president in 1960 and chairman in
1966.
In the early 1960s, Towl took part in a gamble. Grumman
sought to build the Lunar Module (LM), that landed men on
the moon in NASA's Apollo program.
One of NASA's contract requirements was a building'
dev<5ted exclusively to LM engineering.
Towl gambled that the cost of such a facility ~ now
Grumman's Building 25 at Bethpage ~ would be money well
spent. Building that LM would build Grumman's reputation
in the space business.
Towl retired in early 1976 after nine years as chairman of
the board. He impressed his co-workers as a gentlemanly
manager who demanded a high performance level.
"Of all the people I worked with at Grumman, I have a
great deal of admiration for Cling," said Wally Spielman,
who retired as chairman of Grumman Allied Industries, a
subsidiary, in 1975. "He had great business sense. He was
very much concerned about the bottom line -- which was
necessary to ensure that Grumman could continue to make
excellent products."
"He was very much at home in the office," noted George
Titterton of Farmingdale, who retired as a senior vice presi­dent
of Grumman. "To me, it was quite startling when, in the
mid-'30s, he became a private pilot and bought an airplane.
He flew it from Farmingdale to Sea Island, Georgia, where
he had a vacation house.
"Clint wasn't the fly-boy, if you will," Titterton continued.
"I said to him, 'That's a long way. What do you know about
navigation?' He told me, 'Going south, I kept the ocean on
(Continued on Page 8)
E.C. (Clint) Towl (I), former Grumman chairman and a
company founder, approaches mike after being introduced
by John .C. Bierw«rth» present Grumman chairman. Scene
was ceremony at which new Grumman headquarters build­ing
was dedicated to Towl.
SOth Anniversary Parade & Party
by D. Kunzig & J. Box
P. V e i y b o d v loves a
parade! At least that's what
Buddy Mazzara and Jack
Gifft«rd decided when they
set out to organize a com­munity
extravaganza. The
parade on September 13,
1986 (now known as Beth­page
Day) was a colorful
array of cummunity spirit
and animation. Almost
overy local organization
participated in this extensive
"neighborhood" parade.
A formal commeratidn
ceremony followed the
parade including the presen­tation
of proclamations by
Supervisor Colby, Con­gressman
Lent, and Assem­bly
Parola. A state flag was
contributed by Assembly­man
Phil Healy. Also pres­ent
was Councilman Angelo
Deligatti and Town Clerk
Ann Ocker.
Bethpage's long-time res­ident,
Charlie B. Schwarz
proudly proclaimed Carol
Rubenstrunk of 'Bethpage
Queen', just as he did for
Ms. Helen Miller in 1936.
Approximately 3,000
members of the community
were present at the ceremo­nies
and the mood was fes­tive.
The crowd received
each speaker with applause,
enthusiasm and that omni-infectious
community spirit
that Bethpage is famous for.
Former Police Commis­sioner
Francis Looney
illuminated the crowd with a
heart-warming speech
bringing all the town's peo­ple
through a journey of
time. He reminisced with
nostalgia many of the events
and changes that occurred
over the last 50 years pro­ducing
indelible smiles of
memory of those unforget­table
days. Our present Nas­sau
County Police Commis­sioner
Sam Rozzi was
present to greet old friends
and to present the new
academy class of recruits
who will soon be PoHce
Officers,
After the formal cerem­ony,
there were many activi­ties
to enjoy throughout the
day. Rollerskating, a magic
show, a karate demonstra­tion
by the PBC, a survival
display by the boy scouts,
and tables of interest pres­ented
by the Bethpage
Womens Club and the Far­mingdale/
Bethpage Histor­ical
Society. Chuck Johnson
of WHLl's 'Music Of Your
Life' broadcast live from the
park and later there was a
,=*;'.fj??T'^
Oyster Bay Town Supervisor Joseph Colby and Town Clerk Ann R.
Ocker jointly present a citation proclaiming September 13 "Bethpage SOth
Anniversary Day" to Samuel J. Rozzi, Nassau County Police Commis­sioner.
Rozzi and former Police Commissioner Francis B. Looney (left), a
longtime resident of Bethpage, were the guests of honor at the Bethpage
SOth Anniversary celebration. Also on hand for the festivities was Town
Councilman Angelo A. Delligatti.
Vn
Assemblyman Phil Healey (center), a speaker at this past Saturday's
birthday ceremonies, is shown with other elected officials and committee
members at the beginning of the program. Left to right: Assemblyman
Fred Parola, Jack Gifford, Com. Vice Chairman; Buddy Mazzara, Chair­man;
and Congressman Norman Lent. (Photo by R.J. Capak) (See Center­fold
for more photos of the dsy)
D.J. for listening and danc­ing.
Souvenier photos could
be taken with Smokey the
Bear and also behind the
backdrop* of an antique
plane. And speaking of
antique planes, the crowd
was treated to a quick
flyover of vintage antique
airplanes headed by Bill
Ahern Jr., whose father,
William Sr. was instrumen­tal
in having this town chris­tened
'Bethpage' in the first
place, 50 years ago.
And what's a party with­out
food....there was plenty
of scrumptious heros, hot-dogs,
hamburgers and hot
corn provided by Jacques
Caterers.
Indeed, Saturday, Sep­tember
13, 1986, was a day
that Bethpage will always
remember. A GREAT BIG
THANK YOU to the
committee:
Buddy Ma/zara, Chairman
(Continued on Page 8)